Ouadi Qadisha and the Forest of the Cedars

Ouadi Qadisha site is a very fragile cultural landscape composed of a unique ecosystem and of a number of religious monuments: small churches, monasteries, eremitic sites, places of refuge and of meditation, containing mural paintings and composed of fragile structures. The inscription of this site on the World Heritage List as a natural and cultural/cultual site has increased its international reputation and attracted investors wishing to benefit from it. Surrounded by a crown of villages impoverished because of the long period of violence that rocked Lebanon, it has been improperly considered by many as a source of direct easy revenues. The lack of regulation together with an intensified frequentation of the site was about to engender important and irreparable damages.

To avoid the destruction of the spiritual values of the Valley and at the request of the Maronite Patriarchate and the Ministry of Culture, GAIA-heritage has provided technical assistance to the production of a management plan. This expertise mission conducted between 2002 and 2014 included:

• The preparation of detailed guidelines for the management plan of the site to address protection, conservation and adapted use with long-term measures for both its natural and cultural components;
• The design of a regional development programme based on the protection and use of the World Heritage site for the valley and the surrounding villages.
• The drawing of emergency measures for the safeguarding of the site.
• GAIA-heritage has also raised funds for these projects, notably from the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and acted as advisor to the Maronite Patriarchate in the management and operation of the site and its tourism use.